Small percentage of voters pass one Prop 2 1/2 override

Date: 7/5/2011

July 4, 2011

By Katelyn Gendron

Assistant Managing Editor

EAST LONGMEADOW — Narrow margins from a small number of voters decided the outcomes of the two questions on the June 28 Special Election ballot.

Question 1, which asked voters to approve a Proposition 2 1/2 override to fund 20 percent of the $1.37 million upgrades to the town’s radio system mandated by the Federal Communications Commission, passed by a vote of 402 to 343. Question 2, which requested a Proposition 2 1/2 override to finance approximately $330,000 for high school track and field upgrades, failed to pass by a vote of 386 to 362.

“I know that with the economy, everybody is trying to pinch every penny and I’m just relieved that we finally got it through,” Ryan Quimby, director of Information Technology, said of Question 1, which he noted had failed to pass twice before.

Quimby said the upgrades would also fix existing problems throughout town, such as dead spots for public safety radios.

The passing of Question 2 would have financed new track and field equipment, a 500-seat bleacher, additional lighting, striping and a midfield logo on the athletic field, resurfacing of the track, a four-foot high fence around the track and three water cannons to wet the field.

Town Clerk Thomas Florence noted that only 7 percent of East Longmeadow’s 10,820 voters came out for the Special Election, despite efforts to better advertise the event throughout the community.

“It’s common that this turnout is lower than basic [candidate] elections,” he said, adding that elections for town officials yield 15 to 20 percent of voters, while presidential elections see 75 to 80 percent of residents going to the polls.